Every time I see something enjoyable about Meryl and/or Charlie, I want to go back and watch their Die Fledermaus. It embodies the upbeat quality of their personalities and adds fizz to the delightful experience of watching them compete on DWTS every week.

Thanks for finding this interview tulosai! Really nice interview after a rather crappy night scores wise and Abby Lee Miller ridiculousness wise. Was surprised how zen Maks was, at least by the time this interview was done after the show, as I don't think he would have been that way a few years ago. Gotta believe he was able to get zen because he and Meryl, despite the scores, really found artistic satisfaction with this dance, and were at peace with it. I see that as another component of her blooming on this show, and the strong friendship that she and Maks have found with each other. He really is all about her. It looks like between Maks, Charlie, Sharna, Erin and Val, Meryl has some really strong supporters and friends who all want the best for each other.

Oh, and I am psyched to have my guy Scott Hamilton in the audience. I admire him so much for the journey that he has taken.

I loved Charlie more when they skate but Meryl just comes to life on the floor and she demonstrated new found emotion and expression, even more refined and more finished moves, let alone the versatility! She truly surprised me in a good way! I'm a big fan of M&M now and if they don't win I definitely will cry

In regards to Meryl and Maks, I went on twitter (what an experience that was ) and there is a recap from someone who was in the audience and she said that Meryl and Maks never stopped with their affection, even when cameras weren't on them, apparently they were holding hands all night, cuddling every chance they got, sneaking off, they never left each others' side. So who knows?

Could someone remind me? When we talk about Meryl and Charlie as skaters, how are they rated in terms of individual skills? Each by himself or herself, I mean. I'm not as up on the technical fine points of ice dance as I should be, though I dearly love watching it. Anything I can learn from the ice dance experts among us would inch me forward and would be greatly appreciated.

Yeah I have said before and I maintain that I don't care if they are or if they aren't- either is fine, whatever- but I am INTENSELY interested in whether they are or not, like, just to know one way or the other.

I do have to say this is DECIDEDLY the most touchy feely Maks has ever been with a partner. He is touchy feely, but not to this extent. And she is hanging all over him too. It is just too bizarre to me if really nothing is going on, and if that's the case, I do think they have actively spoken about and agreed to cultivate a showmance and have 100% committed themselves to doing this, and have truly gone allllll out, at pretty much every opportunity, whenever there might be a camera on them. They have pretty much literally done everything short of actually making out. The degree to which they are all over each other is not normal, by any standard. I literally can't imagine any other pro and celeb on the show, now or ever, doing it to this degree, and in the past they haven't even when something actually was going on.

I do have to say too that if Meryl is still dating someone else, that is a very understanding guy. For me personally, even considering the touchiness of dancers, I think on some visceral level that some line has been crossed in that case, and to be honest I'd think less of her.

There ends my speculation.

Agree on all counts. The perplexing thing to me is that I've read or heard Meryl say in the past that she and Charlie don't fake a romance like some do--maybe something to the effect that they respect their audience too much to do that (?)

Maybe Maks has convinced her to do a showmance. If she does have a boyfriend, I can't imagine that he'd be too happy about things--even if it is pretend. Having watched D/W for years and having seen how she's conducted herself in the past, this whole thing is fascinating to me.

On the other hand, if people on the show are poo-poohing a romance, maybe something is going on, and they're covering for them. Time will tell.

Could someone remind me? When we talk about Meryl and Charlie as skaters, how are they rated in terms of individual skills? Each by himself or herself, I mean. I'm not as up on the technical fine points of ice dance as I should be, though I dearly love watching it. Anything I can learn from the ice dance experts among us would inch me forward and would be greatly appreciated.

I think when they were younger, people felt like Meryl was a bit behind Charlie in terms of who was the best skater, but that was a looong time ago. To me they seem like true equals on the ice, but it's hard not to miss that Charlie is more error-prone, especially this quad. The only visible error I remember Meryl making were the fall they both had at Skate America in 2010 and a fizzled twizzle at CoR in 2011. But I'm definitely not the person best qualified to answer this question. Maybe Doris?

Agree on all counts. The perplexing thing to me is that I've read or heard Meryl say in the past that she and Charlie don't fake a romance like some do--maybe something to the effect that they respect their audience too much to do that (?)

Oh yeah, I remember that interview actually:

When it is suggested that becoming a couple might be marketing tool to gain endorsements, they laugh.

“There are some other skating pairs who sort of play with the media, pretending they might be a couple,” Ms. Davis said. “But I think people respect and appreciate Charlie and my relationship, and we would never want to pretend it was something else.”

Said Mr. White, “Yeah, but we are getting quite good at looking at each other, when we skate like we are one another’s whole world.”

Another thought: one thing people haven't mentioned about the adjustments Davis and White have to make for DWTS is that they have to perform with another partner. Especially for a couple like this, who have been a pair for their entire skating life, it must be quite an effort to adapt to another partner. Moreover, their respective dance pros aren't even the same body type as the original pair. Both Sharna and Maks are taller and bigger. For Charlie that means being extra careful on the lifts, of course, but even for Meryl there are challenges. She's so diminutive, and Maks is one of the taller, more solidly built pros. He won't be where she's used to reaching, and his holds are higher off the ground than Charlie's, for example. For both Meryl and Charlie, muscle memory could even get in the way during a dance performance. I'm impressed that both of them have been able to mesh so well with the new partners.

Not that this is a bigger challenge than the other contestants have been facing, but it's definitely one that they need to take into consideration.

On the other hand, if people on the show are poo-poohing a romance, maybe something is going on, and they're covering for them. Time will tell.

I don't think anybody on the show has poo-poohed the romance. I think out of respect for Maks & Meryl's privacy they are trying not to egg on the speculation or make definitive statements one way or the other that M&M don't want made. It really is a matter of time will tell.

I don't think anybody on the show has poo-poohed the romance. I think out of respect for Maks & Meryl's privacy they are trying not to egg on the speculation or make definitive statements one way or the other that M&M don't want made. It really is a matter of time will tell.

I agree Buttermilk. It is Meryl and Maks' story to tell, or not.

Perhaps part of Sharna's statement regarding physical affection between dancing partners might also be because she knows (as do other dancers) that non-dancer/theater/cheer people don't understand that dancers/theater/cheerleaders can be very physically affectionate but platonic since they have a much different personal space with each other. There are also people out there who have written negative comments about Maks' "drapiness and grabbiness", as if Meryl is somehow an unwilling victim of his lascivious ways. Heck, he might as well be Simon Bar Sinister twirling his mustache and tying her to the railroad tracks the way they make a fuss.